a/n: Not always smooth. #herewego

Revolutionary Operation, Type Zero

Kinetic Sky

20. Waver

An explosion ripped apart the streets in the distance, a violent burst of wind following it. Another came afterwards, followed by three more simultaneously.

Amy watched as an object flew into the air, dirt and debris trailing behind it. A streak of blue shot up after it before shooting down onto the floating figure, driving it to the asphalt and throwing up another blast.

"Seems like he's doing fine," Amy said to herself. She closed her eyes and focused on the world around her. A moment passed before she could see what was going on from her perch above Station Square...there was the silo from earlier, still filled with life energy. But more importantly, a thin red line coming from the silo moved back and forth in small intervals, shaking slightly.

I see. This is the tether that Metal Knuckles is using...so he's watching us from afar, then.

Metal Sonic was content to let them keep moving, she realized. Was it confidence, or something else?

Either way...it could be played to their advantage. She decided to wait until Sonic was done before contacting him.

In the meantime, Sonic had come to the same conclusion as Amy and was simply biding his time. He narrowly and purposefully dodged the swipes and stabs of Metal Knuckles as they moved across the city streets. His elbow came up and he drove it into the robot's head, denting it inwards. He followed with a quick punch that sent the robot through a building, glass and stone exploding outwards with the impact.

"Can't go showing ol' Metal all of my dance moves, can I?" he said with a smirk.

"Sonic?"

"Rosie-o, what's shakin'?"

"How's everything on the ground?" Amy asked through the communicator.

"It's all good from here."

"Alright. I found something...Metal Knuckles is connected to the silo. It looks like Metal Sonic is using his integration with the city to control him through it."

"So this is his way of feeling us out," Sonic said.

"Yes. He's waiting for something...or he might be toying with us. Maybe both."

"Sounds like bad news either way. I guess I'll just smoke this guy and-"

"Wait."

"Eh?"

"The tether is contracting...and now it's disappearing."

Sonic noted a fresh burst of energy coming from Metal Knuckles' location before it disappeared completely.

"Tch. Chaos Control..."

"You felt it," Amy stated.

"Yeah. Looks like he was just a scout." Sonic turned and looked to the sky. "Guess you're right, he's trying to figure us out. Shads was right to send us to stall."

"Sonic...I'm..."

"You're feeling all topsy turvy all of a sudden. That right?"

"Those negative vibrations are hitting me full force."

He nodded. "I'll be there in a sec."

"Thanks."

Sonic focused and started to search for Amy's signal. He had it...for a second.

"Gone? That can't be right." He closed his eyes and searched again. "Something's off. A few somethings."

He muttered to himself and punched in the proper transmission code. 1-9-9-3.

"..."

Static.

"Damn. This ain't good."

He heard the familiar sound of jet boosters in the air above his head. He looked up.

"This really ain't good."

A fleet of at least twenty Egg Dragoons was descending from the blackened sky. Their revolver cannons whirred and clicked before they launched a barrage of energy bursts at the spot where Sonic stood a moment earlier. He landed on a light pole a block away from the new threats, and they immediately locked on in pursuit.

"I can take care of these chumps...I just gotta find Amy, wherever she is now. Though...twenty is a bit much."

He dropped down to the metallic street and took off, leaving a sonic boom in his wake as the machines followed.

"We're making progress."

Knuckles looked over the chunk of the Master Emerald in front of him. It was suspended in mid-air, above the replica of the Emerald Shrine that Tails had constructed for the Wanderer. Knuckles hadn't bothered to ask why there was such a thing inside of the giant plane; he figured Tails had his reasons, ones beyond his own understanding.

The two had collected a quarter of all the existing shards and were heading towards another on a small island, barely a mile wide.

"That radar of yours is pretty good," Knuckles remarked.

"Glad you think so."

"Yeah. Listen, are you sure that sending them to stall Metal Sonic was the best idea?"

"I'm not sure what you mean," Tails said.

"You don't remember? After that huge fight back then, Amy was a wreck. I don't think it was smart of Shadow to send them in there."

"If they wanted to object, they could have," Tails replied as he left the Shrine room. Knuckles shook his head and followed, the door sliding shut.

"That's not the point. You know how stubborn they are."

Tails turned his head to give Knuckles a look.

"What?"

"...nothing. You were saying?"

"It's irresponsible. She might end up reliving that trauma."

"When did you join the public morals committee?"

"I'm serious."

"Knuckles...it's a bit late to be contemplating the consequences of our actions."

"Now that...that's really irresponsible. What if they get into trouble?"

Tails sighed as he reached the front of the plane.

"Aren't you worried?"

"Yes, I'm worried. I'm always worried," Tails said as he sat in the pilot's chair. "But we have other things to do. I can't spend my time being afraid of what might happen or what wrong turns we could take. We just have to trust them...no matter what."

"I don't like it."

"What's with you all of a sudden?"

"What? What do you mean?"

"When we left them, you were joking about them doing something silly. Now you're worried."

Knuckles adjusted his hat. "It's just old instincts acting up. Something bad looks like it's going to happen soon."

"..."

"Is that the island?" he said, pointing out at the window.

"Yeah. I'll open the rear entrance for you. Contact me when you need to come back up."

"Got it. See you in a bit."

Tails pushed a button as Knuckles left. He sat silently for a moment before activating his communicator.

"Doctor, what's it look like from up on ARK?"

"It seems that the vector flow has slowed further from your last report. But...there is odd movement in Station Square. Energy is being rerouted to the area."

"I see."

"My research on the containment device has not yet yielded results. I will contact you once something is found."

"Understood. Thanks."

"Of course."

Tails shut off communications and slumped back into his seat.

"Maybe he's right...it looks like it from here. But I don't want to think about it right now...too much to do. Too much to take care of."

He felt a vibration and tapped his wrist.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

"Rouge, is everything okay?"

"Just fine, hon. Omega and I are inside a computer room at Westopolis HQ...I want you to do a little of your tech magic for me, if you could?"

"Yeah, I'm game."

"Good. Omega is gonna link you with our target, and we should be good to go."

"Alright. Go ahead."

Tails brought up the holographic screen and focused as the data came in.